


Burnt Valentine

by shireness



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Valentine's Day, basically plotless but I think it's cute
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-14
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2019-03-18 03:56:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13673760
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shireness/pseuds/shireness
Summary: Killian and Emma's first Valentine's Day is not going the way he planned.





	Burnt Valentine

**Author's Note:**

> It's technically not Valentine's Day yet, but I've got a packed day tomorrow (no date, sadly, just the regular busy) so I thought I'd go ahead and post this tonight. It's a little shorter than I usually like, but considering it's close to plotless, I think that's alright. Happy Valentine's Day, folks, and enjoy!

He burns the chicken.

It’s not even a case of just being slightly overdone – the chicken breasts are _charred_. Scalded. Beyond the bounds of edibility. He didn’t mean to, of course; he just got busy with the sauce and calling Granny to double check on the amount of lemon juice he’d need and when he turned back, there had been smoke starting to waft from the oven and dinner was ruined. At this point, the only bright side of the whole situation is that the smoke detectors didn’t blare (though, now that he thinks about it, he should probably double check those tomorrow, since they ought to have gone off with all the smoke in this small kitchen).

Normally, this wouldn’t have been such a big deal – he’d laugh it off and call for Chinese take-out – but today is Valentine’s Day, which he’s been led to believe is a Very Big Deal. Or at least that’s what Emma’s mother had acted like when he told her that they didn’t have any special plans for the holiday – gasping in horror like he had said he and Emma were planning on offering Henry as a human sacrifice to the next Big Bad to plow through town. He’d had to come up with a real plan after that, and pray Emma would like it; if he hadn’t, gods only knew what the Lady Snow would have done (and he’s already been treated to one lengthy lecture on the subject, thank you very much).

There’s a bit of floundering, wondering what the hell he’s supposed to do for this “Valentine’s Day”, before Granny takes pity on him and tells him just to arrange a romantic evening at home. She even provides Killian with a recipe: chicken breasts stuffed with spinach and mozzarella and topped with a lemon-herb sauce. It sounds and looks fancy, she claims, but isn’t actually all that hard to make. Even _he_ should be able to manage it.

Killian had been feeling pretty good about the whole affair until this moment, actually. Henry has his own plans with young Violet, and subsequent arrangements to spend the night with Regina, so there’s no worry on that front. On his way home from the store, Killian had stopped and picked up a beautiful bouquet of lilies, and the master bathroom is filled with candles, ready to be lit for a relaxing and romantic bubble bath. He has _plans_ , and dinner should be the perfect opener. Truly, he has all the trappings of a romantic night at home, and he had been looking forward to sharing his efforts with his wife.

But now, with less than an hour before Emma is due home, his entrée lies charred on a baking tray, his plans for the evening right along with it. Undeniably, the whole thing is in shambles.

He does have food, technically – a side of Caesar salad and that tiramisu Emma loves so much from the local Italian place. But Killian is still very well aware that a salad and a dessert do not a dinner make. He frantically goes to scrape the poultry disaster into the trash, starts thinking that maybe if he’s very lucky and the gods are smiling he can find the makings for some sort of pasta dish in the fridge or cupboards –

And Emma walks through the door. An hour earlier than he expected.

“Hey, babe, you will not _believe_ the kind of day I had –” she cuts off abruptly. “Why does it smell like something’s burning?

Killian hangs his head in shame, dropping the now-empty baking sheet onto the counter with a clatter. All he wanted was to give her a nice night where she wouldn’t have to worry or do anything, but this is an unmitigated disaster.

“Killian,” she says softly, approaching him like he’s some kind of startled animal, “were you trying to cook me a fancy dinner?”

He barely nods, but his silence is probably telling enough as it is.

“Why?”

That causes his head to snap up. She’s asking him _why_? Shouldn’t it be obvious? Isn’t this what he’s supposed to do?

“Well… it’s Valentine’s Day, love.”

She smirks, that infuriating and adorable smirk he’s learned means she thinks she has all the answers. “I know it’s Valentine’s Day, I’ve been wading through red and pink decorations all over town this whole week. So?”

“So, I’m trying to do this _right_ , love. I’ve been reliably informed that this is a day for grand romantic gestures, which I’ve now thoroughly ruined.”

Emma smiles, slightly sadly. “Oh, Killian, you haven’t ruined anything. I don’t need all that.”

“But you should _have_ it,” he tries to insist. “You’re the best thing in my life and deserve only the grandest of gestures to prove it. And your mother suggested you may not have anyone who did this for you before and –” He sighs, collapses in on himself. “I just wanted to give you a perfect evening,” he mumbles to finish.

Emma steps forward to place a hand on his cheek, stroking the skin with her thumb, almost painfully earnest, and he can’t help but lean into her touch, seeking that comfort. “I appreciate that, Killian, I really do, and I love that you want to make big romantic moments and gestures for me,” she says, before continuing in the gentlest tone imaginable. “But all I really need for a happy Valentine’s Day is _you_. I love you, and not because of any perfect date, but because you’re earnest and loyal and make me smile and feel like I’m the most wondrous thing you’ve ever seen. So while I appreciate the effort, if this Valentine’s Day is perfect, it won’t be because of any fancy dinner. It will be because _you’re_ there to share it with me.”

She’s so sincere it almost brings tears to Killian’s eyes. He’s a fool for thinking this holiday is all about some fantasy date; he realizes now, it’s about the time they spend together.

Thankfully, and true to form, Emma seems ready to end this emotionally fraught moment. So he drops a kiss to her nose and steps back, adopting a teasing tone. “Well then, if Valentine’s Day isn’t about the dinner, I suppose I’ll just have to throw this tiramisu away. Pity too, it looks delicious…”

“Let’s not be hasty,” Emma interrupts. “I’ll bet we can still find a use for that.”

\------

Their first Valentine’s Day features pizza on the couch and watching some dreadful, cheesy film (a “rom-com”, she calls it).

Yes, his initial plans were shot to hell, but Killian thinks this is just as nice, if not better, than his original scheme – especially with the way Emma burrows into his side and tries to feed him her ridiculous popcorn concoction. He does cave to holiday traditions by allowing the pizzeria to make their dinner in the shape of a heart – there’s a special deal on it, anyways – but Emma laughs and laughs when he presents their themed pizza with a flourish and a wiggle of his eyebrows, so it’s more than worth it. This is not by any stretch of the imagination how Killian imagined the evening playing out when he woke up this morning, but it’s perfect all the same, because he gets to share it with the love of his life.

(And if they make use of his preparations in the bathroom later, well, that’s between him and Emma.)

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed this! If you did, please consider leaving kudos, comments, and/or feedback - it's the fic writer's bread and butter.
> 
> I'm now on tumblr - @shireness-says. Come make friends.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


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